Tyler's gettin' CRAZY! X-Factor Advanced AND Anabeta Elite

bolt10 said:
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That is the agmatine I use if I get powder. :)

I usually prefer my bulk agmatine in the pre-meal setting and only use it pre-workout if it is in my pre-workout product (which it does seem to be a lot lol).
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Thanks man! Honestly, I was thinking it would be cheaper than that. I am assuming if Nutra stocked their own brand the price would be a good 30% less than that. SNS is known to be top quality though so that's always something to keep in mind.

When you dose it with your PWO meal, do you find you get a good pump during your workout from it? Or is that strictly when you dose PWO on an empty stomach?

Thanks!
Tyler
 
I still get a good pump dosing it with meals. Considering you are using XF I doubt pumps would be an issue anyways. ;)
 
Pulling day workout report:

I felt awesome today. I changed two things. First, I dosed my 500mg agmatine with ABE 20 min before my PWO meal instead of directly pre-workout. Second, I lowered my KNO3 to 300mg. I felt like an animal! My lifts were great, but more than that, I just felt plain old amazing! Everything is going strong and synergizing nicely :) . Here are the numbers:

Bent over row (with perfect or near perfect form): 102KG x 7-3-3 (I'm back baby!)
Medium-grip pull downs: 107.5KG x 11-4-3 (PR :) )
Cable curls: 140lbs x 9-4-4 (PR :) )
Hammer curls: 40s x 7-3-3 (tied my PR from Monday)
Finished with that BJJ-styler chainsaw finisher that I outlined earlier. 5 min nonstop. It was intense!

I only did about 10-15 min cardio before weights as that was all I had time for, but I made up for it with that finisher after my main lifts were completed.

BJJ went well, although I only got to go 5 rounds tonight (but they were very intense).

The reason I did the same biceps exercises is because I explained on Monday that I felt my PRs in those were probably because I didn't perform well on my compound lifts (so I had something extra in the tank for auxilary lifts). I wanted to see if I could match those numbers after killing it on my compound lifts. Not only did I match them, but I beat them on cable curls :) . To say that I am thrilled is an understatement.

I am going to enjoy my weekly cheat meal (half of a large burrito). I added 500mg agmatine and 1 tablespoon white vinegar to my usual yellow gold dose (800mg) tonight to see if it helps me digest all those carbs.

I am feeling better than any other time on this log; stronger than I have ever been in my life. I can't wait for Monday so I can go make the 85s my bitch on flat bench and get revenge for my lackluster performance on Wednesday. But first, leg day tomorrow!

Thanks for following!

Best,
Tyler
 
Solid work man. Kill that burrito. :D
 
Have a good weekend everybody, keep the gains rolling!
 
Leg day report:

I am feeling stronger than ever. Here are the numbers:

Squat: 37KG x 5, 57 x 5, 67 x 5, 77 x 5, 87 x 5, 97 x 6, 107 x 3 (best I've done either ever or at least for the last 6 or 7 years)
Stiff-legged deadlift superset with calfraises:
Stiff legged deadlift: 60KG x 10, 10; 70KG x 10, 10; 80KG x 10 (PR technically)
Calf raises: 100lb x 10, 10, 10, 10, 10

Did 15 min cardio beforehand to warm up.

Did 5 rounds in BJJ competition class, but was pretty relaxed about it (lower intensity).

Honestly, it's not just that I put up more weight. You can tell by my numbers that I probably could do more. I never like to go too hard on any lower-back-intensive exercise because I have a prior back injury, so that's why I keep legs on a seperate day. However, weights have never felt this light before. It just doesn't feel like I am holding as much as I am. I am so psyched that I still have 2 more weeks on this run and can't wait to see the final results!

I had good luck last night throwing vinegar and agmatine in with my post-workout carb meal, so I added those to my PWO meal today. It was awesome but I forgot to take my ABE with it so it could have been even better. I took the ABE about an hour later. I just dosed my post-workout ABE and another 500mg agmatine. I am going to shower, dose 500mg berbering and 1 or 2 tablespoons vinegar and eat my post-workout carb meal.

Tonight, halloween party! ...which I will have my weekly beer at (better than nothing ;) ). Thanks for following!

Best,
Tyler
 
Log is looking good! I have lower back issues as well so I know what you mean by not wanting to push legs too much. Keep that back safe!
 
Patuba said:
Log is looking good! I have lower back issues as well so I know what you mean by not wanting to push legs too much. Keep that back safe!
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For sure! Happy to report it still feels great! Any joint issues I had at the beginning of this log have improved rather than getting worse. I guess either ArA's joint effects are overblown, or the joint support in XFA really works (or both) :) . I was mostly concerned with my knees, but they feel better than they have in months. Literally feel almost 100% which hasn't happened in a really long time.
 
Pushing day workout report:

I am recovering my numbers from earlier in the log, although I still fell a bit short on flat bench. I don't think that will happen again on Friday. Here are the numbers:

Dumbbell flat bench: 85s x 8-3-2 (1 rep short of the PR I set earlier in this log)
Dumbbell shoulder press: 65s x 6-0-1 (1 rep short of my previous 6-2-0 with the 65s)
Triceps cable press: 200 x 2, 190 x 2, 180 x 3, 170 x 3 (done rest-pause style but going down 10lbs per set)
Dumbbell side raise: 40s x 11 drop set to 20s x 10
Dumbbell front raise: 40s x 12 drop to 20s x 15

20 min cardio before lifting. about 45min-1 hour no-gi rolling, relatively light for most of it.

There were two problems in my opinion today. First, I ate too much today at lunch, so even though my PWO meal wasn't larger than normal, I felt a bit bloated at the gym (no cramping on cardio, but I just didn't feel as tenacious because of it). Second, I believe I underdosed my PWO a bit. I didn't get the same burst of energy I usually do. I still expected to get the 85s up at least 9 times, but oh well. Friday I will. I can feel it ;)

Unbeknownst to me, the no-gi class had few people show up so the teacher cancelled class and just started rolling an hour and a half early. By the time I got there, only 2 guys were still in the mood to roll. One rolled with me for 15 min straight and the other rolled with me for at least 30 min. Really nice of them, as they are the only reason I was able to get some good training in.

I screwed up my shoulder trying to finish a choke, which didn't even work :( . It is the shoulder that I injured a few years back and tore my labrum in, so I am really hoping that it is just a little inflamed from the ArA and not re-injured. I won't know until tomorrow, though, so wish me luck. For now I will work into the muscle with a tennis ball and then ice it for a bit. It doesn't feel too bad but if it hurts at all I am going to cancel my presses on Friday and do something else instead (I doubt it will come to that, though).

I am going to reduce my total calories a bit and also reduce my carbs for the remainder of this log. I have been flirting with 3000+ cal per day on lifting days (upwards of 3500 depending on the lifting day) and 2500+ on off days. I have been eating very cleanly (proper ratios and good sources of food; everything cooked myself) and figured that between the ArA and the ABE it was a good idea to get my protein and carbs a bit higher. I haven't gained any fat, but I also haven't lost much since week 4; and I haven't been putting on strength any faster than I was on lower calories, so I will dial protein and carbs down slightly (especially sugars).

That's about it for today; hopefully my shoulder is fine tomorrow! Thanks for following!!!

Best,
Tyler
 
Good luck with that shoulder. I hope everything is okay with it.
 
tyrub42 said:
For sure! Happy to report it still feels great! Any joint issues I had at the beginning of this log have improved rather than getting worse. I guess either ArA's joint effects are overblown, or the joint support in XFA really works (or both) :) . I was mostly concerned with my knees, but they feel better than they have in months. Literally feel almost 100% which hasn't happened in a really long time.
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That's great to hear, Ive heard from a couple dozen users now who have said XFA alleivates their joint pain rather than keeping it the same or making it worth. And I absolutely agree with you, it is both that some make the joint pain side effect sound much worse than it actually is, and that XFA does its job of eliminating that potential side effect.
 
Patuba said:
Good luck with that shoulder. I hope everything is okay with it.[/QUOTE

Thanks man! It doesn't feel great but also definitely not bad. I might move legs day to tomorrow then do pulling on Friday and pushing on Saturday if it is still bothering me at all tomorrow. I doubled up on fish oil and cissus today and have been stretching. Whole thing is my fault as I stopped doing shoulder dislocates the past few weeks. Just slipped my mind I guess. That exercise always leaves me feeling nice and loose after a pushing workout or Bjj. Combining it with a good warmup protocol kept me injury free for a long time. Oh well, hopefully will keep improving.
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I can fully relate on the shoulder pain, I had a heavy chest workout last night and front delts can get pretty damn sore when working with heavy weights. I too notice tremendous improvements as long as I do a very thorough warm up of my shoulders before any and all upper body days.
 
Leg day report:

My shoulder isn't feeling too bad but also isn't feeling great, so I decided to move legs to today, Pulling to Friday, and Pushing to Saturday to be safe. Had a great legs day overall, though, which is great. PRs on squat and deadlift on the same day? Yes, thanks!

Squat: 50KG x 10, 60KG x 10, 80KG x 10, 90 KG x 5, 100KG x 5, 110KG x 3, 120KG x 1 (PR) (felt like I could have gone heavier and done more reps, but don't want to push it)
Stiff-legged dead lift: 57KG x 10, 77KG x 10
Regular dead lift: 97KG x 5, 117KG x 5, 127KG x 1, 137KG x 1, 147KG x 1 (PR)
Calf raise: 100 x 10, 10; 120 x 10, 10

I felt like I could have gone heavier on squat, and def could have gotten more reps at my max weight, but I definitely don't want to push it. I was working without a spotter, hadn't [successfully] attempted that weight before, and I have a fairly serious prior back injury. I broke it during a scooter crash 5.5 years ago and never found out about it until I started getting symptoms of a herniated disc after doing rack deads a few years ago with sub-perfect form (not bad, just not perfect). I went to get an x-ray/mri and found out that I had previously broken it and had reduced disc space below the previously-broken vertebra indicating a disc herniation. It was good to know that the dead lifts didn't cause the injury, but I will always make sure my form is perfect on squats and deads from now on. The same thing with dead lift. I didn't want to do heavier weights for reps, and I did attempt 157KG, but as soon as I started pulling I could tell that I would have to break form a little to get it, so I immediately abandoned that and was happy with the 147KG PR.

I did 30 minutes of brisk cardio before lifting and felt great.

I went to BJJ and did a few light rounds. My shoulder is still a bit sore so I definitely don't want to push it. I will probably take it a little easy on Friday as well, even if the shoulder feels good.

I feel great now that I have reduced calories. I am losing a bit of fat again, but I also feel that my energy is better in the gym. Too much food before lifting left me feeling a bit sluggish and less motivated. I think I am at a great spot now.

I combined 1 gram of Yellow Gold with 2 ABE and 500mg agmatine 20 minutes before my PWO meal (about 80g carbs, 35-45g protein, 10-12g fat). I felt great in the gym after that. Lots of energy, pumped up, and not bloated or slow.

Overall, although I am bummed that I had to rearrange my workouts to accommodate my shoulder, I am glad I am being smart about injuries (only took me 30 years :) ), and I am really happy with my lifts today. Thanks for following!!!

Best,
Tyler
 
Cardio preWO and BJJ post, thats a heck of a day or working out!

Congrats on the squat PR, and on being smart enough to reschedule since your shoulder was bothering you. Sometimes skipping workouts, or re arranging the order can be rough, but it certainly beats risking injury.
 
SwolenONE said:
Cardio preWO and BJJ post, thats a heck of a day or working out!

Congrats on the squat PR, and on being smart enough to reschedule since your shoulder was bothering you. Sometimes skipping workouts, or re arranging the order can be rough, but it certainly beats risking injury.
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Amen bro!
 
Pulling day workout summary:

I have to mention that today was our school's Halloween celebration. I managed not to overdose on candy, but I also did eat some. A few lollipops, a few small pieces of chocolate, etc. etc. All empty calories and it adds up. I also had a piece of pizza when my Honors class had a pizza party. On top of that, I didn't sleep too well last night, so I felt a little crappy by the time I got to the gym. I decided to go a little light on my PWO and skip the KNO3 to make sure I didn't feel cracked out. My shoulder is feeling 95% and I felt ok on that front. My lower back is pretty sore from my big leg day on Wednesday, so I had to make sure to keep my form perfect on back exercises. I also modified pull downs to make sure they wouldn't irritate my shoulder. Between the back and shoulder, I kept it light at BJJ as well. Here are the numbers:

Bent-over row: 107KG x 5-3-3
Pull downs with individual handles on each pulley pulled at neutral grip (the machine at this gym has two pulleys, though they are usually connected to one bar so not sure what the point is): 103KG x 9-3-3
Preacher curl: 42KG x 5-0 drop to 37KG x 1-2
Reverse-grip cable curl: 100lbs x 4-2-2 (got super light-headed after second phase again, just like last time...weird)

Did 10 min of cardio before lifting, warmed up my shoulder and back really well, and then went to BJJ after but only rolled lightly with focus on techniques. Overall I did better than I expected and by the time I was leaving the gym I felt way better from the junk food hangover :) . To make up for the junk food today, I will not be eating a cheat meal tonight (as I already cheated enough today), so I shouldn't see and ill effects in my physique. I actually looked pumped as hell from the extra carbs mid-day today. Overall, a good day, and I believe my shoulder should be good to go with a pushing day tomorrow :) . Thanks for following!

Best,
Tyler
 
Good news on the shoulder. Hope it's ready for pushing day!
 
Pushing day workout report:

First of all, my shoulder felt good today. BUT I am old enough to know that doesn't mean it is 100% yet, so I still did my rest-pause sets, but I kept the intensity a little shy of 100% to make sure I didn't re-injure it, and I switched from shoulder press to 45-degree incline bench press. For triceps I went with close-grip flat bench as it is not very taxing on shoulders and easy to keep good form on. Here are the numbers:

Dumbbell flat bench: 85s x 6-1-1
Dumbbell incline bench (45 degrees): 75s x 6-2-0 (I think this is actually a PR but I don't do the exercise too often and don't want to claim it if there is a chance it isn't true. I can't remember repping 75s even close to 6 times ever, though)
Close-grip bench press: 80KG x 4-2-2 (PR...also I was keeping it shy of full intensity and didn't have a spotter so I could have probably done significantly better)

I tried to keep a neutral grip on dumbbell exercises to keep shoulders safe. Besides those lifts I just didn't a sh*tload of shoulder rehab exercises. A few before lifting and a bunch after. I did only about 5 min cardio as a warm up as I didn't have much time. Afterwards, I went to BJJ competition class, BUT I just rolled lightly as my back is still a little sore (almost had a spasm when sitting on the sofa this morning) and my shoulder was definitely still a little tweaked and I could feel it by the end of my lifts (although after stretching and rehab exercises it feels fine...it isn't 100% yet, though). In addition, my right middle finger is killing me. I had a ligament issue a few months back, but nothing recently and don't know what's wrong. I think it is just a ArA flair up though and will feel fine soon (I have had that happen in a few places with previous injuries on this log. Will hurt or throb a bit after training, then will feel fine a few hours later or the next day. Probably related to an inflammatory response to ArA. Knees feel great, though, and no headaches recently :) ).

I feel like an idiot right now, though. At BJJ I purposely didn't wear a mouthpiece to remind myself not to push it. I told the people I rolled with that I just wanted to go light. The first guy I rolled with didn't understand completely (this can happen..."light" can mean 30%, or it could mean 70%. I just wanted to work some positions and flow with partners, but I wasn't clear about that) and went harder than I wanted. I figured I would just deal with it and stay out of trouble without using my back or shoulder (not easy BTW when you are on the bottom and have a large dude who is very good trying to sub you). It worked fine, but then at the end he elbowed or kneed me in the mouth by accident. Now my lip is swollen and will be black for a few days. I'm not mad at him, but I am pretty pissed at myself. I should have stopped him during our roll and clarified what I meant. We rolled again after I clean my lip up and I explained what I meant and we had a good session. So basically I am now hangin out with a tweaked shoulder, tweaked back, tweaked finger, and a busted lip. All of my friends are going to Halloween parties but I am not as I am drinking one beer a week, so I will just head to a pre-gaming party to hang for an hour before coming home early. Overall I don't feel great now, and it's all my freakin fault. At least my lip wasn't torn open too much and only bled for a minute, even though it is swollen as f**k right now. Pretty pissed at myself about how avoidable that was and feeling bad because I couldn't give 100% in the gym or on the mats today. Hopefully by my next pushing day (Wednesday), I will be back to a legit 100% with my shoulder.

Anyway, I am looking better than I ever have. I haven't taken my real "after" pics yet as I still have more time on this log, but I will post a before pic and a pic I took of myself today before working out (unpumped for a fair comparison). The difference is shocking. It is the one thing that is making me feel better about being such an idiot ;) . Thanks for following!
 
Your abs are more pronounced and your chest and arms are noticeably bigger. Nice work!!!
 
Patuba said:
Your abs are more pronounced and your chest and arms are noticeably bigger. Nice work!!!
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Thanks man! I didn't realize how much fat I had lost until comparing with my before pics. It's been my biggest transformation yet.
 
Daayyuuummm. Now that is some solid work man. :eek: :thumbsup:
 
Yesterday pretty much every joint in my body was screaming at me (back, fingers, ankle, wrist...not the shoulder or knees though which is cool) and I felt really beat up. I doubled up on my fish oil and cissus and even hit the ibuprofen which I almost never resort to; most importantly I rested all day. Today I am feeling way better. My finger only hurts a little bit, my ankle feels much better, my wrist is good, my back feels almost as good as new (well, used but not as beat up :) ) and my shoulder feels great! I only have a few more workouts on this log, so I am glad I will not have anything in my way when I go to kill it tonight! I just scarfed down 2 ABE, 1g berberine and 1g agmatine and then ate an awesome PWO meal about 25 min later. Workout summary coming up in a few hours :) .

Best,
Tyler
 
Oh also I have enough XFA to bump up to 8 caps this week. Should I do it??? Or do you think it's better to just stick with 6?
 
Just had a great workout, great BJJ session, and feel awesome. Joints feel great, still full of energy, and loving it! Multiple PRs today :) . Here are the numbers:

Bent-over row: 107KG x 6-4-3 (same number of reps as last week with 103KG! still kept perfect form), 117KG x 1, 127 KG x 1 (1 rep PR! It didn't even feel too heavy but I didn't want to start breaking form so I stopped there)
Rack deadlift (already had the bar in the right place from bent-over rows so I figured why not): 127KG x 5, 147KG x 3, 177 x 0 (I was expecting to get this, but the fact that the bar is bent and unbalanced was really noticeable and I didn't feel great pulling it...I decided to abort to avoid the risk of hurting myself and I stand by that decision ;) )
Med-grip pull down: 107.5KG x 12-5-3 (PR...beat the hell out of my old PR from like a week ago :) )
Cable curl: 150 x 5-2-2 (aaaaaaaaaaaand another PR! I could barely do 120 for this many reps 8 weeks ago!)
Hammer-grip dumbbell curls: 40s x 9-3-3 (you guessed it: another PR! I will have to move up to 45s on Friday)

I think I will repeat these exercises on Friday except switching to super-wide grip pull downs as my shoulder feels great even after all the lifting and jitsing! I like how these hit my biceps more than my preacher curl/reverse-grip cable curl routine that I have been alternating with.

Did 10 min cardio as a warm up, and 10 min of cardio after lifting before heading to BJJ. Did a solid no-gi session. Not too crazy, but not too light. Learned a couple of things, did a couple of things that let me know my game is improving even from last month, and had a great time.

I taped my middle and ring fingers during lifting and BJJ as they were both still bothering me a bit (mostly middle finger...guess I've been flipping too many people off lately :) ). They don't feel any worse than they did before lifting and BJJ so I'm very happy about that. I made sure not to use that hand too much and focused more on locking people down higher up on my arms and keeping a tighter game while keeping my hips mobile. Good practice as anything that helps you get your hips moving and try some new things is good.

2 more workouts before I can celebrate a log well done (and I'll prob log my workout Saturday, too...I'm just gonna have a beer or two on Friday with a very large, well-earned cheat meal :) ). It's been a long one, but I hope to impress you all with some killer visible results in addition to setting PRs on freakin everything multiple times over for the past 8 weeks. Thanks again to all of you for following this!

Best,
Tyler
 
Very impressive results, X-Factor Advanced works amazingly for fat loss, which many do not realize.

I see no reason not to try bumping it up to 8 caps per workout!
 
I didn't have to tutor today, so I ate a handful of craisins, chewed a piece of Thermo Gum, took 3XFA w/ GPLC and GMS, hung around for 30 min and then went to do some cardio. I did a 30-min job on the elliptical, and then decided to do some hip-ups as they were in an article on AM I read yesterday and I sort of forgot they existed for awhile. They won't interfere with my pushing day tomorrow, so I figured why not. I have no idea what a "good" weight is for that exercise and am not familiar on suggested rep schemes, so I just did sets of 10 with 60, 100, 120, and 140 KG. By the time I got to 140KG I needed two bar pads to help make them less painful where the bar contacted my hips. It felt like a good hip/glut workout, though. I ended with some simple ab stuff and went home. Hopefully that helps make up for the fact that I forgot my chicken/coconut oil stir fry today and had to replace that afternoon snack with a [freaking awesome] cupcake with peanut butter frosting. All's well that ends well I guess :) .

Best,
Tyler
 
ThermoGum is great stuff. We are friends with Matt Pearson who made that product, he comes out with some of the coolest and most unique products to ever hit our industry!
 
SwolenONE said:
ThermoGum is great stuff. We are friends with Matt Pearson who made that product, he comes out with some of the coolest and most unique products to ever hit our industry!
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Yeah I keep a pack at work all the time in case I start crashing in the middle of the day. Definitely an original product.
 
Thumbs up for Thermo Gum. I haven't had any in a couple of years but it was a great kick in the ass when I needed it.

Matt Pearson's formulations never fail to impress.
 
Patuba said:
Thumbs up for Thermo Gum. I haven't had any in a couple of years but it was a great kick in the ass when I needed it.

Matt Pearson's formulations never fail to impress.
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Yeah great bang for my buck... literally (it was a Buck a pack... hard to beat)
 
Absolutely monstrous day in the gym tonight! I upped it to 8XFA before downing my PWO. I had crazy insomnia last night...again...and only got about 5 hours of sleep. Chewed a piece of thermo gum before teaching this afternoon. Honestly, I didn't feel too bad due to the extra energy Anacyclus in ABE gives me. I dosed about .7-.8g of berberine, 1 gram of agmatine, and 2 ABE before my PWO meal. I was feeling a bit tired before my workout, so I made sure to take a proper dose of my PWO for energy, another 250mg of agmatine and 300mg of KNO3 and I was on my way. I pushed myself harder than I possibly ever have before. This is my last pushing workout on this log. I have been fighting to get back to the PRs I set a few weeks ago, and didn't want to end this log defeated. Here are the numbers:

Dumbbell flat bench: 85s x 9-3-3 (PR, finally beat the 9-3-2 I had a few weeks ago!!!)
Dumbbell shoulder press: 65s x 6-1-2 (PR! I finally beat the 6-2-0 from a few weeks ago!)
Close-grip bench press: 80KG x 5-3-3 (PR! I had a spotter this time who I trusted not to help me unless I told him to, so I was able to push myself to the limit)
Dumbbell side raise: 40s x 12 drop set to 20s x 15
Dumbbell front raise: 40s x 15 drop set to 20s x 21
Triceps press (I still had energy and time because I cut cardio short, and I wanted to hit my triceps fiercely today): cascade (continuous drop sets with no rest) 200 x 1, 190 x 2, 180 x 3, 170 x 4, 160 x 2 or 3 (couldn't remember because I was so out of it after that crazy idea for a set), then wrote that stuff down (rested for however long that took; maybe 30-40 seconds or less) and hit 160 x 5 to finish it off.

Cardio was 15 min nice and spirited on the elliptical.

BJJ was awesome! Did some super high-intensity rolls, and ended with some lighter ones to work techniques. Felt super drained by the time I had to go home, but in a good way.

I worked my a** off to beat those PRs on flat bench and shoulder press. I was going nuts. My last reps were full of screaming and slow to get up, but I never gave up and refused to let myself fall short of PRs no matter how much my body was shaking and screaming for me to stop. By the last sets of each of those, my legs were twitching uncontrollably, my eyes were bright red, and I had veins popping out of everywhere.

My last rep on shoulder press was SLOW. I was giving it my all and refused to let that last rep beat me. While I was screaming and slowly getting it up, a nice guy came to try to help me. I couldn't be bothered to think of anything in Chinese to say and just screamed "no no no no no no" until he backed off looking really frightened. I felt like an a**hole but I couldn't let him help because then I didn't beat my old PR properly. I apologized right after and we had a laugh about it, though. I think by this point I am the crazy guy in the gym. It's bad enough I'm white, but now I'm the guy who go so intense he is screaming and twitching uncontrollably during his sets and yelling at anyone who tried to help. ...I'll get over it ;)

I have never looked as vascular as I do right now. I notice while doing warm-ups for bench that I actually have veings popping out in my shoulders that I have never had before. Not just visible, but popping out. It's freakin awesome to see those kinds of results! I am down somewhere around 5 lbs, but seem to have dropped way more fat than that and added a lot of muscle. Mission recomplished :) . I am going to take proper "after" pics tomorrow as it will be the last night I can do it when I haven't worked out (before and after pics will both be on a Thursday night at the same time not having worked out for posterity). I will post them here soon. Stay tuned for my last logged workouts on Friday (pulling) and Saturday (legs). It has been an awesome 8 weeks! Thanks so much again to Tim and the whole MN crew, Nattydisaster and the whole PES crew (esp bolt and bdcc for the encouragement during this log :) ), and all of you who have been following my long-winded log entries! I really appreciate it, all of you :) .

Best,
Tyler
 
Last pulling day report:

I had a strange schedule today. I had to go to work early for our school "birthday," where I participated in a race and several tug-of-wars. I then got to take the afternoon off before going to a mandatory school dinner. I got my lifting done before the school dinner, and will go to BJJ in a few minutes. I recently got NOW ashwagandha, NOW relora, and ON melatonin. I took all three last night. They worked great getting me to sleep, but I ended up having the most vivid dreams of my life. I don't generally have "good" or "bad" dreams; I dream in varying colors of f**ked up. I had such a vivid, crazy dream that I ended up being wide awake at 5AM and not being able to get back to sleep until about 7. I then had to wake up at 7:30. I ended up with 4.5-5 hours last night, and less than 6 every night since Monday. In short: I was tired. The tug-of-wars might not have helped either, but the fatigue was the main culprit. My endurance just wasn't where it should have been today, and I am feeling exhausted right now. I am supposed to come home after BJJ and eat a nice meal, drink a beer or two, and hang with the wife in celebration of the completion of my log, but I don't know if I'll have the energy. Anyway, here are my numbers:

Bent-over row: 107KG x 5-3-3 (really had to fight for these, despite under-performing)
Super-wide grip pull downs: 103KG x 7-2-1 (had a great first stage, and then couldn't pull it off in the second or third)
Cable curls: 150lbs x 6-3-2 (PR...likely due to the poor performance in big lifts)
Hammer curls: 45s x 4-2-2 (PR, although I have never tried this weight before so I don't know what I could have done if I was well-rested)

I did a brisk 20-min cardio session beforehand. I will go do BJJ now and then either celebrate being able to eat again, or just go to bed (the latter sounds like more fun right now ;) ).

I took my "after" pictures yesterday (both on a Thursday, a rest day, not having exercised and at the same approximate time of day for a fair comparison). They are pretty epic. I will post them after my final log entry tomorrow for leg day. Overall, I have never been this shredded, never been this vascular, and never been this strong. In short, ABE + XFA + hard work = amazing results :) . OK now it's time to go get my ass kicked by a bunch of people who actually slept last night :) .

Best,
Tyler
 
Great job, looking forward to seeing the dramatic differences and progress.
 
Your results have been inspiring. How was your diet during all of this?
 
Patuba said:
Your results have been inspiring. How was your diet during all of this?
Click to expand...

Thanks! Diet has been extremely disciplined. Breakfast is a protein shake with a med banana (50g protein, 10g fat, about 35g carbs). Second meal has 50-60g protein, about 10g fat (from lean meat and coconut oil) and 20-30g carbs (vegetables, a bit of sugars from any sauces I cook with, and a tiny bit of red rice if it's not a workout day), PWO meal is 40-60g protein, 60-80g carbs, and 10-15g fat. I drank 1.5 scoops of protein immediately after workout (35g protein, 9g carbs, 2g fat). My last meal of the day is 50-60g protein, 10-15g fat, and 5-10g carbs.

On non-workout days, my second and third meal were about the same (50-60g protein, ~10g fat, 20-30g carbs), with 40-50g carbs split between those two meals so I could take my ABE without going hypo. On Thursdays (non-workout day), I shifted carbs toward my first meal and slightly away from my second and third meals because I had a longer break between my first two meals.

Cheat meal was Friday after my workout and consisted of half of a huge burrito (lots of carbs, lots of cheese/sour cream, healthy amount of protein). I drank a protein shake before this immediately upon returning home. I dosed Yellow Gold before this cheat meal and eventually also dosed agmatine and vinegar before it as well. In the latter part of the log, I also dosed YG before my PWO meal in addition to agmatine (500-1000mg) and sometimes vinegar.

My weekly beer was usually Saturday night and I only drank it if I managed to be perfect with my diet the previous week. If I had to sneak any kind of junk food during the week, I didn't get to have a beer.

If I needed a snack throughout the day, I would usually drink a single serving protein shake (21g protein, 1.5g fat, 6g carbs), or a handful of (c)raisins, depending on what I felt my body needed at the time.

My average daily calories ended up being 2000-2500 on non-workout days and 2300-2800 on workout days (more on cheat day) from my estimates. I found that keeping them towards the lower side of that yielded better recomp effects without hindering strength gains.

I don't think I have ever been this disciplined with my diet during a log before. I wanted to show MN and PES how much I appreciate what you guys have done for me. I figured that being extra well-disciplined with diet and training would best allow me to show how effective these supplements can be when used in conjunction with good diet and hard training. I will post before/after pics soon and will post my final logged workout in a few hours. I am more vascular than ever, my body fat has never been lower and I am stronger than ever, having set PRs on every lift I performed during this log. It has been tough at times, but I think that it was definitely worth it!

Best,
Tyler
 
Leg day workout report:

This is a bittersweet report for me: bitter because I am now out of XFA and this will be my last logged workout (and I missed my squat PR from last week), and sweet because I did hit a stiff-legged dead lift PR, and I will soon be in Taipei's first craft beer bar drinking several selections from MIkkeller's single hop IPA series (thinking I'm going to start with Nugget :) ). Here are the numbers:

Squat: 60 x 5 (warmup)
60 x 12
80 x 10
100 x 5
110 x 1
120 x 0, 0 (tried twice and couldn't do it...luckily I had the safety bars positioned well)

Stiff legged dead lift (super-set with calf raises): 60 x 12
80 x 10
90 x 10
100 x 8 (PR...technically the 90 x 10 was also a PR for 2 minutes until I did this one :) )

Calf raise: 100 x 12, 12, 12, 12 (super-set with SLDL)

25-min jog to warm up, but no time for BJJ today.

I had to work today, and I was out in the sun the whole time. I also had 2 beers last night, and, as I mentioned, haven't been sleeping this week. I got almost 7 hours last night, but was exhausted by the time I got home and had to sleep for an hour before hitting the gym. Even with my PWO, I knew I was sluggish. It sucks that I couldn't end the log under more pristine circumstances, but life happens and I am still very happy with my progress in this log.

I will post (epic!) before/after pics soon, as well as giving my final review of the XFA/ABE combo, so stay tuned!

Best,
Tyler
 
Congrats on finishing your cycle. Sounds like you had a fantastic run. Can't wait to see the pics!
 
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...I don't think this needs to be said, but just to be sure, the before pics are the ones where I look fat and out of shape :)
 
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closer pic showing the vascularity increase on this run...best vascularity I've ever had :) .
 
Overall, I was expecting really good body composition changes, and reasonable strength increases. Both exceeded expectations, but I would say the strength increases surprised me more than the body composition changes. I do feel like I could have gotten a bit stronger if I was eating for bulk, or a bit leaner if I was eating for cutting, but overall I think that this was my sweet spot and provided me with the best of both worlds.
 
Sorry I forgot about this important information: total weight lost is 5-7 lbs. As you can see from the pictures, I seem to have gone from 15-20% body fat to what I would guess is 10% or less, so there was a substantial LBM gain in this log. The biggest difference, aside from fat loss in my mid-section, looks to be in my shoulders, which look much more rounded and pop out quite a bit more than they did 8 weeks ago.
 
Man that is some amazing progress. Bonus points for the awesome shorts (TMNT FTW!) and the growing of a beard! :D
 
Damn. Awesome before and after pics man for real. Very successful run.
 
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